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For much of my life when I was little, I had to wear AFOs, which are basically braces that I wore on my feet to keep them from turning inwards (before my first surgery, my femurs were turned inwards). Getting new AFOs had its ups and downs. I had to get casted for new braces every time I grew, and most of the time it wasn’t something I was looking forward to. New braces meant fresh “hot spots” on my feet until I could get used to the braces and “break them in” in a sense. Even though we used padding to try to ease the hot spots, they weren’t comfortable. When any body part has to be held in a position that it’s not naturally in, it’s not exactly fun. The one thing that did make me smile was getting to pick my color.

Picking a color for braces is a lot like picking a color for a cast after you’ve broken your arm (which I’ve never done, thankfully). You want something bright or something that makes you smile when you see it rather than frown. I know that many times I chose hot pink and bright purple. However, I remember one special time when I had to get new braces when I was at Shriner’s Hospital. Instead of going for one of my typical bright colors, I picked the bright red that had monkeys on it. I was so excited to be able to look down and see animals. It almost made the fresh “hot spots” worth it. Almost.

The best thing about getting new braces was Mr. Tim. I can see his face in my mind even now. He was the orthopedic doctor that I went to when I needed new braces, and seeing the way he smiled every time he saw me almost made the process of getting new braces bearable. I remember the process so clearly. Mr. Tim started by taking an ace bandage roll and soaking it in what I think was plaster of paris. Mr. Tim then wrapped the ace bandage around my foot and waited a few minutes for it to harden. The next part, the part that always made me a little anxious, was when Mr. Tim had to use a saw to remove the brace mold. Even though I knew that Mr. Tim wouldn’t cut me because I knew how many brace molds he had made, the sound of the saw wasn’t pleasant…and it could make you nervous even if you didn’t think you were one bit scared.

Even though I’m grateful that I don’t have to wear braces on my feet anymore, I remember coming across an old pair of braces when my mom and I were cleaning out my closet a few months ago. It felt good to be able to not even have to hesitate before I told my mom to get rid of the braces, but for just a second, I thought of Mr. Tim and the smile that seemed to brighten even the really hard days.

One Response to “Mr. Tim and braces.”

Aww Mr. Tim sounds wonderful! I know you are thankful to not have to wear braces but I bet it was fun as a child at least to pick out a new color for your braces. I didn’t have leg braces but I’ve been wearing glasses since I was three because I have a crossed eye. I loved getting to pick out new glasses every time I needed a new pair… I had these cool (w giant lenses so they prob weren’t cool to other kids) rainbow glasses that I wish I had kept! I also had to pick out patches to wear over my right lens… Mine had ponies and rainbows and unicorns on them. Great post! 🙂